This is Stefano Bertoncello's Blog (ステファノ・ベルトンチェッロ - トゥーグッドイアーズ − ブロガー、オーディオ＆ミュージック・コンサルタント) devoted to pacific topics like Music - live and reproduced - i.e. discs, audio, guitars - both vintage and new, concerts, workshops, and related stuffs.
Furthermore: travelling - as a mind-game and real globetrotting, and books, movies, photography... sharing all the above et al. and related links... and to anything makes Life better and Earth a better place to stay, enjoying Life, in Peace.

Friday, March 30, 2012

Since The Absolute Sound mag suggestion, many, many years (eons?) ago... Hykes and his Harmonic Choir and "Hearing Solar Winds" on Ocora vinyl accompanied yours truly for the last 27 years, now... in the meantime, I (badly) learned harmonic throaty double overtones singing and bought some more Hykes' discs and disks, 'til these present days

Only one hour ago I had an after dinner listening at my studietto... some Nigel Kennedy violin solo by Bela Bartok's and Hykes' "Harmonic Meeting". on Celestial Harmonies label...

Great, timeless, both easy and deep, deeeep music... Brotherhood and Hallelujah tracks remind me to something I only can imagine... as liner notes suggest, a time where Christianity was a Judaism sect and religion wasn't "church", that sort-of secret multi/national society which rules the world.

Mysticism is and should be a very personal activity, ABSOLUTELY money and (ANY) power unrelated, and Buddhism is masterful and GREATLY inspiring about this... and this music is as personal and mystic as it can be.

It's a ladder to a purer life and a richer relationship with our very self, the truest, crystal clear essence.

If you never listened to him... well, your very self will sure appreciate his music...

"David Hykes has opened a new dimension in music, bringing us the music of the spheres.It is the music of overtones which hold sway throughout the universe...As music, these wondrous sounds retain an extraordinary mystery, for theymake every listener feel humble and yet part of the great Whole." --the renowned violinist, conductor and yogi, Lord Yehudi Menuhin

I still fondly remember a younger me having some sexual perturbations while looking at Little Milton's sister lovely panties blinking under the skirt, on cover picture at extreme right, lower corner;-)... this would be GREATLY embarassing if replicating the cover with same characters - namely the sister - now, in 2012;-)))!

Monday, March 26, 2012

Last Saturday I had my very first (not the last, I feel...) lesson of Japanese style drums playing, those Taiko BIG drums which - through "Dafos" on Reference Recordings label and the famous "Kodo" drummers literally shocked the audiophile community... earthquake-like rumbles and blasting, explosive forceful group drumming with great patterns, both physical and meditative as a discipline.

Masai-san of Masaitaiko drumming ensemble from Japan visited for the second, consecutive year my hometown during the still going on "Haru no Kaze" festival, a Japanese/Italian springtime happening involving ikebana, tea ceremony and, yes, traditional drumming.

I enrolled myself and left my guitar player attitude home, wearing those weird yukata-like dressing and being a drummer for two hours!

Two extremely enriching and pleasant hours, indeed... Masai-san explained rhythms patterns, and beautiful sound making on those BIG drums and myself and a group of "pupils", a total of ten people, we banged and screamed and moved following sensei-san instructions...

The beautiful dance-like movements while playing were the most difficult part for me, while after some so-so drumming, I obtained a deeep, round, strong sound from my 1 m tall and 70 cm diam. drum.

The sound coming from a group of ten drums in a 150 sq.m room with high ceiling was awesome... beautiful, ground-shaking, earthquake-like... I was both part of it in the "noise" making and enjoying the sound-waves decay, the organized "drums battles" and the patterns, at same time.

I left after chatting with the group members from Japan deeply moved and relaxed and... maybe I'm NOT a guitar player... I'm a Taiko drummer!